Fritz Howard
Deputy Chief Fritz Howard is the commanding officer of the Special Operations Bureau and currently the Acting Assistant Chief of Operations for the Los Angeles Police Department on Major Crimes. During The Closer and the first two seasons of Major Crimes, he was a Special Agent for the F.B.I. and the liaison officer to the LAPD. He worked as part of their Organized and Serial Crimes Unit based in Los Angeles. Fritz received his training from the F.B.I. in Washington D.C., and had been working in L.A. three years prior to Deputy Chief Brenda Leigh Johnson's arrival. Federal Bureau of Investigation At the start of The Closer, Fritz is introduced as an old friend of Brenda's during her first case in "The Closer (Pilot)". She is told she will not be able to obtain DNA results from the LAPD for many weeks, so she contacts associates at the F.B.I. Fritz notices that the results are for Brenda and personally delivers them. From this moment onwards, Fritz goes on to provide the Major Crimes Division (formerly the Priority Homicide Division) access to F.B.I. resources through his many contacts. However, this causes some friction between Fritz and Brenda and he stops giving her squad special treatment when his colleagues start making fun of him in "Homewrecker". In cases where Major Crimes works with the F.B.I., Fritz often acts as liaison agent, much to the amusement of the detectives. In "Do Not Disturb", Fritz is shown to be worried about politics while investigating a murder connected to an Indian diplomat. His adherence to policy causes him great annoyance by the squad with Lt. Provenza making snide comments about looking for clues and Fritz kissing the diplomat's ass. However, when the diplomat goes too far, Fritz loses his temper and threatens to have him deported despite threats to his job. During "Two Options", Fritz works side-by-side with the LAPD to rescue two kidnapped children and their mother from the husband, who had kidnapped the three and murdered his parents who were in witness protection. Fritz insisted on leading the charge with SWAT instead of Andy Flynn, telling him to trust him as he could do "what needs to be done". During the raid, the hostages were rescued and Fritz shot the suspect who was firing at them with a submachine gun. After the raid, Taylor offers him the job of Deputy Chief of the Special Operations Bureau. While Fritz hesitates at first to take the job, he ultimately does and retires from the F.B.I. for the job. According to Taylor, by that point, Fritz had been with the F.B.I. long enough that he could retire with full benefits. Los Angeles Police Department Having retired from the F.B.I. after 27 years, he is appointed to the rank of Deputy Chief by Assistant Chief Russell Taylor to command the Special Operations Bureau at the end of "Sweet Revenge" in Season 3 of Major Crimes. Shortly after accepting the Deputy Chief position, he falls victim to a heart attack. During this time, Lt. Michael Tao became privy to this, when Fritz asked him to drive him to the hospital. He is told by his doctor to reduce the stress in his life and to change his diet if he wants to recover fully. He is also told that he should think about retiring or taking disability leave because going back to work could possibly risk his life. He ignores these suggestions and returns to work wearing a pacemaker and eating blood thinners to reduce the clotting in his arteries, though he keeps this secret from all but Tao. He has not even told Brenda about his heart attack or that he wears a pacemaker. After this event, Lt. Michael Tao often tells him to "take it easy" when he gets agitated or stressed from the job, often confusing his colleagues. The timing of him accepting the Deputy Chief position could have come at a better time considering his health. His first major operations immediately after accepting the position were the rescue of a kidnapped police officer and containing a possible gang war after a gang banger was acquitted of murder and released from jail, both of which put him under serious stress. In "White Lies, Part 1", Fritz was assigned as the ''Acting'' Assistant Chief of Operations after the Los Angeles County Courthouse shoot-out which left Assistant Chief Taylor, among others, dead. Although having taken the position, he noted to the Major Crimes Division that he had no interest in being permanently promoted to Assistant Chief and being Russell Taylor's replacement. In "Heart Failure", Fritz is responsible for overseeing the departments active shooter response training. It also became apparent that Deputy Chief Winnie Davis is not very accepting of his position as the Acting Assistant Chief, claiming that the department lacks firm leadership under his command. In "Quid Pro Quo", when Capt. Raydor and Cmdr. Mason were discussing their possible promotion to Assistant Chief, Raydor notes that Fritz is also in consideration after Mason only mentioned himself, Raydor, and Davis. Mason remarks afterwards that Fritz is out of the race as he would have already been promoted to that position permanently if he was even being considered. In "Intersection", Howard assigned the Major Crimes Division to investigate a hit-and-run, as Los Angeles is having a war between cars and bikes and has become the number one in the nation's hit-and-runs. Because of this, the LAPD's Traffic Division's are overwhelmed with cases, and too few drivers are getting arrested and too many children are being killed. Fritz wants to turn that around, and starting from that night, the hit-and-run situation in L.A. has become a major crime. In "Shockwave, Part 1", Fritz is at a leadership conference, resulting in Winnie Davis coordinating the efforts of all the divisions of the LAPD. After the bombing at the end of the episode, Fritz is recalled to LA in "Shockwave, Part 2" while Davis takes his place. Fritz aids the squad in stopping Cristian Ortiz's efforts and survives the bombing of the Major Crimes murder room. Afterwards, Fritz takes Sharon to the Assistant Chief's office where its revealed that Leo Mason got the promotion and has allowed Fritz to retain his job as Deputy Chief of SOB. Fritz also appears to know of Sharon's impending promotion to Commander though he departs before she is actually promoted. Personality Smart, well-liked and a true gentleman, Fritz Howard is presented as the opposite to Brenda Johnson and her previous lover, Will Pope. His kindness, especially when it comes to Brenda, is seen in the first episode "The Closer (Pilot)" when he personally delivers her much needed DNA results. At times, it is also seen as a fault, however his desire in being able to please Brenda shows that he will ignore professional boundaries and even risk his career in order to help her close her cases. Once he begins dating Brenda, he is seen to be patient and humble in tolerating her work addiction and is willing to wait several hours or days so that he can see her. Fritz sometimes does get annoyed with Brenda, especially when their work crosses division lines and she does not uphold her end of the deal. However, they are always determined to keep their professional and personal lives separate. His kindness is also demonstrated when he delays his moving-in with Brenda, so that her mother does not find out. Although, he does become irritated that he is not able to meet both Brenda's parents after they have moved in together and why they must use separate phones - something which proves disastrous for him. He also does not like being left to entertain and care for Brenda's parents when they do come to visit, due to the perceived hostility that he will receive from her father by ignoring traditional family values. The revelation of having two D.U.Is on his licence proves as a shock to Brenda later on in the series and something that contrasts highly with Fritz's perceived character. His angry outburst towards Brenda in explaining why he received them shows a markedly different side to him that viewers have not been able to see before. When Commander McGinnis asks if Fritz is a bureaucrat, the Major Crimes squad tells her he's not so bad for an FBI agent. Despite this, at times Fritz is shown to be worried about policy such as during "Do Not Disturb" when dealing with an Indian diplomat. During that encounter, Fritz's help hindered the investigation more than helped due to his adherence to policy. This led to snide comments from Provenza about how they are actually searching for clues unlike him and that while he's been kissing the diplomat's ass, the diplomat is not doing the same, causing them issues. However, despite this, Fritz proved himself to be willing to go against the rules by detaining the diplomat with force when he attacked his daughter in the police station despite threats to his job. Relationships Brenda Leigh Johnson Fritz and Brenda's romance blossoms in Season 1 of The Closer and becomes more serious during Season 2 in which they decide to move in together in "Blue Blood" and later marry in "Double Blind". After being attacked in "Fantasy Date", whilst investigating a victim's house, Brenda phones Fritz and is unable to confidently hide the shock from him. He subsequently shows up at the Parker Center to take her home and take care of her for the night, showing an early insight into his feelings for her. With the theme of Season Two being partnerships, Fritz and Brenda's relationship slowly becomes stronger despite being occasionally strained, due to Brenda's commitment to her work and tactic of delaying personal matters in favor for her cases. This is seen when the arrival of Brenda's mother, Wille Rae, delays Fritz being able to move-in with Brenda. He has to keep all his possessions in a U-Haul trailer parked outside Brenda's house, so that her mother does not find out resulting in them both having to constantly cover their tracks about their relationship, much to Fritz's embarrassment in "Mom Duty". Despite this, Brenda's mother reveals that she knows of their relationship and approves and promises not to tell Brenda's father about it, much to Brenda's delight. On Brenda's birthday in "Aftertaste", he sends her a huge bouquet of flowers accompanied with a card which is read by Provenza, "Happy Birthday. You're 40 years young and I love you." In "Grave Doubt", after accidentally picking up the wrong phone, Fritz ends up talking to Brenda's father, infuriating Brenda. She is fearful of her father's reaction and is later resolved to read in his letter that it is of forgiveness and happiness for her, rather than anger. At the start of Season 3, Fritz along with the rest of the squad are increasingly alarmed by Brenda's symptoms that suggest she is gravely ill. Despite refusing to see a doctor, in "Four to Eight", Fritz eventually convinces her to go suspecting that she is pregnant, something which terrifies Brenda. She is diagnosed with Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome, and will be able to have children, much to the excitement of her parents, especially her mother. Fritz comforts Brenda after learning her diagnosis, by which it is reversible through means of ovarian drilling, and ensures that she will recover fully. Following this, he proposes to her in "Manhunt" saying that he can not imagine life without her. Later on, in "'Til Death Do Us Part One", whilst trying to arrange multi-car insurance, Brenda finds out that Fritz has two D.U.I's from some years earlier and is a recovering alcoholic, contradicting his earlier admission that he is "allergic" to alcohol. He is called "Fritzy" by Brenda as a nickname. Fritz also knows of Brenda's and Will Pope's previous affair in Washington, D.C. His relationship with Pope is somewhat awkward and uncomfortable due to this. It is not known if this awkwardness continues during his employment with the LAPD, with his close professional relationship with the Chief. In Season 3 of Major Crimes, Fritz tells the team that Brenda is considering a new job in Washington, DC, but given his new position in the LAPD, its unclear what Brenda did about the job or how their marriage was affected. He also now hides a heart attack from his wife and his need for a pacemaker. Family Fritz has one sister, named Claire who believes she is psychic. She helps Brenda with a case in Season 4 "Fate Line". She is also a witness to Brenda and Fritz's wedding. She is unmarried. Fritz's parents died at some unspecified time before he met Brenda, and left cash for Fritz and his sister, Claire. Fritz used this money to pay for Brenda's lawyer when she was being sued. Officer-involved shootings * ICE Agent Joe Meyers in "Help Wanted". * Paul Collier in "Two Options". Category:Characters Category:The Closer Category:Major Crimes Category:LAPD Category:Special Operations Bureau